


Protector of the Small

by MotherOfBeardedDragons



Series: Petvengers [7]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Clint is the dog whisperer, Feels and fluff, Gen, Peter Parker is a Good Bro, The Avengers Are Good Bros, Tony Stark is a BAMF, Tony and Peter rescue a dog, petvengers, the team helps her recover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2018-10-08
Packaged: 2019-07-28 00:04:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16230068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MotherOfBeardedDragons/pseuds/MotherOfBeardedDragons
Summary: On a small mission Tony and Peter see a dog being mistreated. After sending the criminals flying through a wall Tony helps an upset Peter try to calm the hurt and scared dog. With Clint's help the three set out to help the dog recover and give her a home.





	Protector of the Small

**Author's Note:**

> This was a request from Khrfan123. 
> 
> Trigger warning:mentions of animal abuse and neglect. Nothing graphic and the dog finds a happy home with the Avengers. But we all love our furry friends and hate to see them mistreated, even in fiction. 
> 
> This isn't a sad story, Tony Stark kicks ass and everything ends happy. There's just some feels along the way.

   There were a lot of things that pissed off Tony Stark. Traffic, running out of coffee, reality TV, people who used too many hashtags on social media, crocs, alarm clocks, golf...the list went on really. But few things caused him to fly into a true rage. The type of rage where you felt blood rushing in your ears and literally see red. He imagines it must be what Hulking out feels like. Except maybe the Hulk sees green instead of red...he’d have to ask Bruce.

   One of the things that really and truly pisses Tony Stark off is people hurting those that are small and helpless. Children, the elderly, animals, people who can’t defend themselves. He can’t stand it. So that’s how he ended up throwing someone through a wall and sending someone else crashing through a window. Without hesitation and with lots of shouting and cursing. Judging by Peter’s shocked expression this is the first time the kid has seen him like this.

   Tony knows he’s hotheaded, stubborn, kind of an asshole depending on who you ask. But he generally doesn’t beat the everloving shit out of his enemies. That’s more, say, the Punisher’s style (when he doesn’t just shoot them). Tony usually makes some good quips, humiliates the asshole he’s fighting, and hands them over to the proper authorities. Not this time. It’s been a while since he truly let his rage get the better of him and absolutely kick someone’s ass. 

   He and Peter had been tailing some criminals that were causing issues in the Friendly Neighborhood Spider Man's neighborhood. Peter had asked Tony for backup and he had happily obliged. Peter was getting a lot better about knowing when to ask for help and not running headfirst into situations he couldn’t handle. So he and Peter had eventually followed a drug pushing scumbag through an alley to a back entrance of a building. They quietly crept in behind him, Peter filming to have evidence to give the authorities. It had taken them a couple of days to find this hideout. 

   It was a total dump. Dirty, chaotic, crowded. Everything you’d expect from a low level criminal dive. They were in a common area; Tony and Peter crouched down behind a cabinet. There was a woman sitting at a table. She started yelling at the man as soon as he walked in. Something about money. Tony was afraid they would start hitting each other, but they kept their distance and kept yelling. He wanted to cover up Peter’s ears; these two assholes were using language that would make a sailor blush (not Tony, of course. He could teach them a thing or two about cursing). Tony was keeping an eye on Peter, who seemed pretty unaffected by the harsh language- that’s public high school for you, so he didn’t see the small dog enter the room. 

   The dog was a medium sized mixed breed on the chubby side. She also had a lot of fur, so that made her look bigger. She obviously hadn’t been groomed in a while. She had her ears flattened against her head and her tail tucked as she tried to quickly move away from the loud noise. Tony looked up as the man yelled something about “that stupid mangey bitch” and kicked the dog. She managed to avoid most of the blow, unfortunately probably well practiced in dodging hits, but yelped as she was pushed into the wall. The woman laughed. 

   That’s when Tony moved. Before he had time to think he had used his repulsors to blast the man through the wall and send the woman through a window. He took a moment to try to breathe. He looked to see Peter’s surprised expression. He heard FRIDAY talking. 

   “I’ve called in backup. Mr. Barton is nearby as is Ms. Romanov. They should be here soon.”

   Tony sighed. “Thanks FRIDAY. Are those two alive?,” he asked looking towards the criminal-shaped holes in the wall. 

   “Yes boss. Injured but stable. They won’t be going anywhere.”

   Tony was glad he hadn’t killed them. But he had to resist the urge to add some more injuries to the ones he had already dealt. Especially when he saw Peter. The kid was kneeling down trying to coax the terrified dog out from under the couch. He had tears in his eyes that he was trying to control. Those bitches had made his kid cry. He was so going to make their lives miserable. 

   “She won’t come out Mr. Stark. I think she might be hurt, but she’s really scared. I think they’ve been hurting her for a long time.” Peter had his head down. He was trying to control his emotions. 

   “I know kid. I’m sorry I lost it there.” He knew his blasting hadn’t helped the poor animal. 

   “No, it’s ok. I would have done the same thing. You just beat me to it. I just can’t believe people can do this. I mean...look at her.” Peter had been fighting crime now for a while. He had thought he’d get used to it. But it seemed people found new ways to be terrible. He took a shaky breath. 

   “Hey, it’s ok. They got their comeuppance, and they’re going to get more. Black Widow and Hawkeye are on the way,” he said placing a hand on Peter’s shoulder. He could feel his that his breathing was ragged as he tried to keep his emotions in check. 

   “What about her?,” he asked, his voice breaking a little, as he looked at the dog cowering. 

   “We’ll take care of her. I’ve got lots of money remember. We’ll get her the best vets, the best grooming, best food. Hell I’ll get her gourmet dog food. We’ll give her a good life.” 

   They both looked up as Clint and Natasha climbed through the hole in the wall. 

   “What the hell happened here?,” Clint asked. “We saw the two assholes you reverse Kool Aid Man-ed through the wall.”

   Tony sighed. “We were scouting and he hurt a dog. I kind of lost my cool and blasted his ass through the wall. Hers too.” He nodded at Peter and the dog. He silently pulled up the video Peter had taken. 

   He saw Clint’s expression change from contemplation to pure anger as he took in Peter’s tears and the scared and injured dog. Tony expected him to run down and finish them off. Natasha’s expression was neutral, but Tony saw the fire in her eyes. She put a hand on Clint’s shoulder. 

   “I’ll take care of them. You help Tony and Peter.” She knew her partner needed to cool off. She could take the two criminals in. They might end up in custody with some more injuries, but she’d get them there alive. She couldn’t say the same for Clint. She knew abuse hit close to home for him. People that hurt animals didn’t stop there. Besides, Clint was amazing with dogs. He might be able to calm the scared dog down some. 

   Clint nodded after a moment. He knew he shouldn’t handle the two criminals when he was this angry. He saw why Tony put them through a wall. Natasha went down to take out the trash and Clint turned his attention to Peter. He was still kneeling by the dog. 

   “She’s so scared,” Peter said sadly. He had managed to keep himself from breaking down completely. 

   “I know. We’ll work with her. She’ll probably be scared for a while, but if we show her love and kindness and that we’re not going to hurt her she’ll come around. Dogs have an amazing capacity for forgiveness,” Clint said with admiration. He like dogs better than a lot of people.

   “You know a lot about dogs,” Peter replied, calming down more. He was still upset but he knew between Mr. Stark, and Hawkeye, and the rest of the Avengers she would be ok. 

   “Barton here is the dog whisperer,” Tony replied, glad to see Peter looking less shaken. 

   “I rescued Lucky from some pretty terrible people. It took a while, but you see how he is now. He’s happy and loves everyone,” Clint said with a smile. He had the best dog ever. And he would do everything he could to make sure this dog had a good life. 

   Peter wiped the remaining tears off his face, “I’m sorry I got so upset. I know heroes see bad things and I can’t go crying every time I see something bad.”  

   “Kid. Just because we see shitty things all the time doesn’t mean they don’t affect us. This is our job. We stick up for the little guys. We protect people, and animals, that can’t protect themselves. We can’t do that if we don’t feel anything. Don’t ever be ashamed for caring,” Tony said kindly putting a hand on Peter’s shoulder. Peter smiled. 

   “Alright, it might take a while, but we’ll get her calmed down and take her back to the tower. Bruce isn’t a vet but I’m sure he can do some scans or something until we can get her to an actual vet,” Clint said looking through the cabinets. He didn’t expect them to have treats, but he was looking for something to try to lure her out. There wasn’t much of anything. “Bastards,” he muttered after a while. 

   “What?,” Tony asked. 

   “There’s no dog food. None at all. Those assholes have probably just been feeding her table scraps. That’s why she’s got extra weight. She’s been on a shitty diet,” Clint said angrily. Tony clenched his fists. He’s glad Natasha took the two away. 

   Clint finally found some Cheez Its. It took about forty five minutes, but the dog finally came out from under the couch. Clint could tell she was young, probably no more than two. She needed a bath and a haircut, but she was adorable. He couldn’t understand how someone could treat her like this. Another thirty minutes later and they had coaxed the exhausted dog into Tony’s arms. She seemed to trust him the most so they went with it. 

   They finally made it back to the tower. The three men met Bruce in the lab. Tony had messaged him. He had some equipment ready. 

   “You can keep holding her, I should be able to do the can like this,” Bruce said as he passed the wand over the trembling dog. This equipment was the latest in checking for injury in the field. It would tell them if there were any pressing injuries. 

   Bruce sighed. This was hard on all of them. They all hated to see helpless people and animals hurt and abused. And a lot of them had a history with abuse. He tried to stay calm and focus all of his thoughts and energy onto helping the dog. 

   “She had bruising on her side, but nothing looks broken. However, there are some old injuries that have healed up. This isn’t the first time this has happened,” Bruce said sadly. Tony had set the dog on the floor where she was sitting nervously. 

   At that moment Puggles came charging into the room snorting excitedly. He ran towards his playmate. The dog leapt back, despite being bigger than the pug, and tried to run. 

   “Shit, I don’t know how he got in here. I’m so sorry,” Bruce said as he scooped up the wiggling pug. 

   “It’s ok, he just wanted to play,” Peter replied scratching Puggles behind the ear. He snorted happily. “Maybe later. She’s scared right now.”

   Clint and Tony managed to get the other dog calmed back down. 

   “She needs a name,” Peter finally stated. Bruce had gone to put Puggles away. 

   “What are you thinking?,” Tony asked. 

   “It might be stupid,” Peter replied. 

   “No, come one. Bruce has a dog named Puggles, nothing could be stupider than that,” Tony replied. 

   “I didn’t name him, for the record,” Bruce replied re-entering the room pug free. 

   “Peter was about to tell us this girl’s name.”

   Peter took a breath. “Okay, so I know it’s cliche but I was thinking maybe Hope. Because now she has hope of having a good life. Plus, it kind of goes well with Lucky,” Peter rambled, as was his habit when he was nervous. 

   “Hope. I like it,” Tony replied. 

   “How does that sound girl. Do you like the name Hope?,” Clint asked the dog. One of her ears tentatively lifted up in curiosity. 

   “I think she likes it,” Peter said smiling. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

   Hope was absolutely terrified of the people in the tower and their pets. Puggles was too hyper and while Bruce was kind Hope seemed to sense his nervousness. Thor and Steve were huge and Hope didn’t know what to make of the large bullfrog. Thor’s fish didn’t seem to bother her. She actually liked watching them when Thor wasn’t there. The god took to leaving his door open for her. 

   Loki the ferret had gotten loose (again) and it had taken Clint and Tony a long time to reassure the terrified dog who didn’t know what to make of the crazy animal. So far the only people she really seemed to trust were Tony, Clint, and Peter. 

   After about a week Tony and Clint took hope to the vet and got her updated on her shots. The vet had seen a lot of cases of abuse and neglect and told them it wasn’t as bad as it could have been fortunately. Hope had some malnourishment and was carrying extra weight from a diet of mostly fatty but not nutritious food. She hadn’t been walked or exercised. She had some old injuries that had healed up, but nothing too major. Overall, she looked good despite her situation. The vet prescribed a special food for her and told them that most of Hope’s recovery would be mentally. The vet gave them a number for an animal behavior specialist that did work with abused animals. 

   The vet visit had freaked Hope out and Clint and Tony were worried that it had messed up all the progress they had made. However, Hope seemed to come back around after a while. She was still timid and scared, but she opened up a little around them now. 

   They managed to get her to the groomers. They made sure to pick a skilled groomer who had worked with rescued dogs before. She was patient and although Hope was terrified, by the end she looked like a new dog. She was clean and all of the matts had been taken out. The groomer had put cute bows in her hair. Hope was exhausted that night from her long and terrifying day, but Tony could tell she felt refreshed. 

   They worked with the animal behavior specialist and slowly but surely Hope began to open up as she got used to the residents of the tower. She would probably always be nervous around strangers, but she was slowly warming up to the team. After several weeks she was comfortable enough to walk around the tower by herself instead of constantly sticking to Tony’s side. Everyone was happy to show her attention when she carefully approached them. 

   A couple of months later Clint introduced her to Lucky. She was scared. He was a lot bigger than her. But Lucky was calm and let her come to him. Having come from a similar background he seemed to know what to do. The two quickly formed a bond. A while after that Hope interacted with Puggles again. She was a little wary of the wrinkly ball of energy at first, but soon warmed up to him. 

   Everyone on the team enjoyed buying her new toys and treats, which she excitedly accepted. They took turns taking her jogging and between that and her healthy diet she was at a healthy weight. About six months after she came to live at the tower hope was the official tower dog. She didn’t attach to one particular person, but moved around. She seemed to have a strong sense for who needed love and attention. She was still nervous, loud noises freaked her out and she didn’t like strangers, but she had found a home. 

   Tony and Peter sat on one of the couches in the living room, Hope asleep on Tony’s lap. 

   “I’m glad she’s doing so good,” Peter said looking at the sleeping dog. 

   “Me too. She’s made awesome progress. Clint’s teaching her tricks,” Tony said fondly. 

   “I like how she shares everyone, you know. She soaks up love from everyone and makes them happy.” Peter paused for a moment. “I’m really glad we found her. It might not be the biggest thing we’ve done like stop aliens or bust a criminal ring, but it’s just as important. Taking care of the little guys.”

   “That it is,” Tony said smiling. He scratched Hope behind the ears and she nuzzled against him. 

   Later, Peter left and Tony went down to the lab. Hope took a walk around the tower and ended up in Natasha’s room. She had gotten back from a rough mission and was lying in bed she smiled as she felt the warm furry dog cuddle up against her. 

   Hope was exactly what the team needed. A sweet dog that knew when they needed comfort who was a reminder of what they fought for: to help those who couldn’t help themselves.  

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope everyone liked it! I felt like with everyone getting individual pets there needed to be a team pet. 
> 
> I borrowed the title from the badass book series Protector of the Small by Tamora Pierce. 
> 
> Working in dog grooming for a while and knowing a lot of people who do rescue work I know this wasn't totally accurate. It takes a long time for dogs to heal from bad situations. Some never fully do. Each case is different. I moved things a long quickly for pacing purposes but tried not to make it a perfect quick fix. I'm definitely not an expert in dog behavior or anything, just a big fan of dogs. 
> 
> I'm planning on writing a Petvengers Halloween party next.


End file.
